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Monday, January 28, 2013

How pumped are you for the Super Bowl? It's going to be a bit of a somber occasion around here since the man is a Pat's fan and... well... you saw what happened.

Thankfully Kimberley from Kimberley's Kitchen - my number one marshmallow destination - has her game face on and is fully prepared with these amazing Superbowl Ice Cream Sandwiches.

Have you meet Kimberley before? She makes incredible artisan marshmallows and confections. She's passionate about quality food and the environment, and all her ingredients are simple, often local, organic and fair trade certified.

Take it away, Kimberley!

Ice cream and chocolate chip cookies. Two of my favorite things. So, I
thought, why not put them together and make the ultimate Superbowl treat for
our annual party!

Superbowl is a big deal in our house. We spend months planning our menu;
long before we know the teams in that final game. And if it happens to be two
teams we like, or even just one, then all the better! However, this year is
shaping up to be two teams we don't particularly love (sorry!) so we are
planning a fairly neutral color palette and putting away all of our Saints
memorabilia.

I was trying to think of a hand-held dessert combining my two favorite
foods and then it hit me- Ice Cream Sandwiches! Who said they are just for
summer? My epiphany came to me after I made a batch of the BEST HOMEMADE ICE
CREAM EVER!

Okay, I know that I am not the first to make homemade ice cream. But
trust me, if you haven't tried it, you are missing out. Of course, this recipe
would work just fine with your favorite store-bought. But homemade really isn't
too difficult or time-consuming so why not try it?

I started with football shaped cookies made from my Favorite Oatmeal
Chocolate Chip recipe, which I am sharing below. But you could use any cookie
recipe that you love- chocolate cookies, sugar cookies, you name it, it would
work just fine.

I then added a few mix-ins. I am all about the mix-ins. Here we have
simple, humble chocolate chips and some handmade marshmallows (to be fair, I
add marshmallows to just about everything). And voila. You have a Superbowl
dessert that is fun, interactive, and destined to be a family favorite.

·To make football-shaped cookies, dust surface with
flour and with floured hands, pat out dough to about 1 inch think; cut with
football cookie cutter (you could also cut with a paring knife by hand or use a
round cutter and pinch corners to create football shape)

·Bake on a lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, until
golden and slightly brown around edges

·Remove from oven and cool on a rack; stored in an
airtight container these cookies will stay fresh for several days, but they
really won't last that long.

To make the best Vanilla Bean Ice
Cream (recipe adapted from instructions that came with my ice cream maker,
however, you can make this without an ice cream maker too)

·Remove from heat and stir in scraped seeds from
vanilla bean or 1/2 t vanilla extract

·Pour into a bowl set over a slightly larger bowl
with ice (called an ice bath) to slowly cool down your custard; stir
occasionally

·When cool, chill in fridge for 3 hours up to
overnight

·Pour custard in frozen bowl and follow
manufacturer's instructions for using ice cream maker or place stainless steel
bowl in freezer for several hours

·Scoop out ice cream when ready to serve

Homemade ice cream tends to be softer than store-bought, making it
perfect to press into ice cream sandwiches.

To assemble your Ice Cream Sandwich station, stack cookies (make ahead
for easier prep), jars of ice cream with large spoons to smush it on cookies,
and an assortment of mix-ins. Perhaps some napkins would also be a good idea.